As You Wish
by kleec13
Summary: Martin decides that not only does he want to take his passion for animals further in college, he wants to take his passion for drawing further in college, too. His dad, however, has other ideas. (P.S. Thanks to emeraldsandopals for the title suggestion!)


Martin was hanging out with his siblings after a three-day orientation at Duke.

"Hey, Martin, your dad's home from work!" Mama Kratt called to Martin. Martin dashed downstairs.

"Martin!" Papa Kratt said giving his son a hug. "How was orientation?"

"Great! It's going to be an amazing four years. Here's the list of classes I'm taking," Martin said, showing his dad the sheet of paper.

"Awesome, I'll look in a minute!" Papa Kratt took off his shoes and walked towards the couch with Martin in the living room and took the list.

"Drawing 1?" Papa Kratt asked.

"Um, yeah," Martin said nervously. "I thought I'd maybe work in an art minor since I learned Duke has a good art program."

"Do you think that's a good idea?"

"Yeah, why not? It's a liberal arts college. It's perfect for people with multiple interests."

"Martin, you're my son and I love you, but you've got your head in the clouds too much as it is. You don't need anything else to encourage more of it."

Martin couldn't remain calm any longer.

"Ugh, you've never approved that I like doing art. I've heard that drawing is somehow girly and distracting from enough people! I'm not going to take it from you!"

Martin stormed up to his room, leaving his dad with a lot of thinking to do. But before long, he saw his younger son approach him.

"Hi, Chris. What's up?"

"Hey dad. I… overheard your conversation with Martin."

"Oh," Papa Kratt said looking at his feet. "I'm assuming you're here to defend your brother."

"I could, but in the end, that would just be a waste of time. I just want to ask you—have you looked at Martin's drawings? Like really looked at them?"

This question stunned Papa Kratt. He was even more taken back when he realized that he hadn't looked at Martin's drawings. He knew that Martin was drawing and occasionally drew things for his siblings, but never paid much attention to the drawings themselves. A wave a guilt came over Papa Kratt as his dad instincts kicked in.

"No, Chris. I'm sorry to say I haven't."

"You should. They're really good."

Chris then left the living room knowing he had done what he wanted to do. Meanwhile, Papa Kratt went upstairs and found Martin reading. Martin pretended not to notice anyone was there while Papa Kratt sat on the bed.

"Hey, sport. Listen. I don't want to be mad at you and I know you don't want to be mad at me. I also don't want to keep you from things that make you happy."

With this, Martin put the book down to look at his dad.

"So, you'll let me take the class?"

"Well, it depends. Before I do that, will you do me a favor?"

"Sure."

"Could you draw me something? And can I stay and watch?"

Martin nodded and eagerly put away his book and went to his desk with colored pencils and some paper.

"What should I draw?" Martin asked.

"Anything you want."

Martin made a thoughtful face and tapped his pencil on the paper, then started on the drawing as the lightbulb went off in his mind.

Papa Kratt watched intently as Martin drew. He couldn't believe he missed out on a what appeared to be a big part of who his son was. Martin seemed… happy, for lack of a better word. Papa Kratt knew that drawing made Martin happy (he had said so earlier), but seeing it made reality set in.

When he was finished, Martin put an MK in the corner, and handed it to his dad. Papa Kratt looked at the drawing, then back at Martin.

"So, what creature is this? It looks a little like an ostrich, but smaller."

"Yes, they're related to ostriches. It's called an emu. They're both flightless birds."

"And why did you choose to draw an emu for me?"

"Well… um… emu dads are great dads, like you," Martin said sheepishly. The idea seemed less cheesy in his head. "Unlike a lot of species, male emus are the ones that take care of the young."

"I see," Papa Kratt said with a smile, looking at the picture again. "You can be quite persuasive when you want to be, can't you?"

Martin laughed a little and shrugged. His dad gave a sigh before continuing.

"As long as you graduate in four years, you can take any classes you want."

"Really?"

Papa Kratt nodded.

"I admit, it will take a bit for me to get used to the idea of art classes. But you're in college now. You're going to be 19 in December. I need to trust you. And more importantly, you're my son. Either I love all of you or I love none of you. I choose the former without hesitation."

Martin gave an understanding nod.

"Thanks dad."

"No need to thank me. It's what dads do. Who you should really thank is your brother. He's the one who said I should see your art."

"Alright, I'll thank him when I get a chance," Martin said with a laugh.

With that, his dad gave his oldest son a wink and left the room for Martin to continue drawing on his own.


End file.
